A lot of people have been having issues flying and launching the plane. There have been a lot of good ideas posted but they are all over tons of posts on 2 boards. Here's an attempt to consolidate them all into one pre-flight checklist for the P-51. So many people have contributed these items that I won't be able to name them all or try. You know who you all are
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Items to check before going out to the field:
1. Canopy coming off.
Drop some hot glue or any glue on the tabs inside the fuse should fix that.
2. Aileron tube coming unglued near the servo.
One solution if you have this problem is to reglue it in. I had this problem on my first wing but I took it back to the hobby shop. My hobbyshop exchanged the wing and as a precaution I used some glue on the new one to just make sure that this would not happen again in flight.
3. Check the aileron wires for corrosion
[ul][*]Be aware that that the wires for the ailerons can corrode over time and should be checked and lubed. Lube them now with a graphite or other lube that should protect the wires. [*]If the wires do corrode, replace them with a guitar wire. The guitar wire has a higher nickel content and is more resistant to corrosion. The ultimate replacement would be stainless steel wire if you can find it.
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4. Glue the tail in.
They say that the tape works but after my first flight I noticed that the included tape did not hold the tail on well. I used plain old elmers white glue to hold the tail on better. Elmers white glue works great if you want to be able to take the tail apart if you needed to.
5. Check the engine out.
[ul][*]Check the screws that hold the gearbox in, to make sure they are not loose. [*]Check the 2 screws that hold the motor on the gearbox to make sure these are not loose. Might want to use some loctite to keep the screws in place here.[*]Tighten the prop nut on, to be sure prop doesn't come off in flight.[*]Optional: Lube the gears in the gearbox, to be sure they are not binding.
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6. Check the ailerons to be sure they are hooked up correctly, and don't loosen in flight.
The tighter the better. The last thing you want is the aileron rod to slip on that screw. Check the settings according to the manual.[ul][*]a. Optional: add washout to ailerons : set your ailerons up so the trailing edge of the upper part of the aileron is 3/64" to 1/8" above the surface of the wing at the TE.
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7. Tape or rubber band the battery hatch.
I use a rubber band from the parkzone Cub wing around the body and you can't see it in flight and I've not had a battery eject yet (knock on wood). There has been a suggestion to drill 2 small holes on either side of the battery hatch and insert 2 small screws and ca them in. Then you can put a rubber band around just those 2 screws to hold the battery cover in.
8. Check the RX to make sure the wing screws are not going into the circuitry.
I found that on my plane the wing screws were digging into the RX. I now have the RX velcro'd to the right side of the fuselage. This also gave me a lot more battery lead and I no longer have issues attaching the battery. I have not seen any change in flight characteristics from moving the RX to this spot.
9. Insert a piece of foam in with the battery to keep it from moving around in the battery compartment.
10. If you want to check the Center of Gravity for the plane it's located 70 mm from the leading edge on the wing
To test:
[ul][*]Measure back 70 mm, on each side of the wing, close to the fuselage[*]Put your battery in the plane[*]With a finger on each mark of 70 mm, the bird should sit level, balanced on your fingers[*]If one end drops its heavy on that end. I would suggest it being slightly nose heavy, for better performance. To fix the Center Of Gravity you can use anything from clay to moving around the electronics.
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Launching the plane: (most of these from ScottieJay)
1. Be a competent pilot! If you have not flown at least the J-3 cub or similar plane and are good at it then step away now!!!
2. If you are a new pilot you should launch on low rates to minimize possiblity of a tip stall at launch.
3. Add a touch of up trim before launch. (I generally use full up trim and retrim once in the air.)
4. Aim at a spot about 100 yards in front of you and into the wind
5. PZ says use full throttle to launch.
If you want to throw the plane harder you can use 3/4 throttle.
6. Take three steps or more and toss....don't just throw, help the plane to flying speed.
Always throw it harder than you think you need to. I can usually tell when it's a good time to let go of the plane because I can feel it starting to lift out of my hand. If you do not feel it wanting to lift out of your hand do not let go of the plane.
7. Keep the plane as level as possible when you toss it.
8. It is important to make sure that the plane gets speed before you start to control it.
After launching the plane it should be heading skyward on it's own. Only minor stick movements until you are at least 100 feet up. I'd say a lot of the crashes are probably due to people trying to over control the plane before it's up to speed.
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Landing the plane:
1. Land in a soft spot, nose high to prevent snapping off the prop and tearing up the belly.
[ul][*]High grass is great if you can find it. [*]Otherwise get the plane low and continue to drop power until it starts to fall. Then at around 6 -12 inches off the ground flare it right before it touches down. You need a lot of room to do this until you get good at it. It's fun to practice this at 100-200 feet before the actual landing.
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Tips:
Buy some spare props. Even the best pilot will sometimes break prop when landing a belly flopper.
Please add to this. I think I've gotten all the tips that I've seen. I know that these have all worked for me.